A CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED Syrian musician set to headline the Irish music festival Metropolis has had his visa refused.
Omar Souleyman was one of the big names – alongside Nile Rodgers of Chic, The Roots, and Jeff Mills – scheduled to play at the Metropolis Festival, which takes place at the RDS this weekend.
However the festival organisers said that Souleyman has had to pull out after his visa was refused, which means he won’t be able to play a string of UK dates either. Souleyman had left his home country in 2011 after the Syrian civil war broke out. He is now based in Turkey.
The festival organisers said:
Unfortunately, despite trying to resolve the situation for a few weeks, he was denied a visa to come and perform in Ireland (and in the UK).
We are extremely disappointed, especially in the current climate, that a Syrian citizen who has performed here and in the UK many times before should be refused a visa to come and do his job. He is a proud representative of his nation and we’re extremely disappointed he will not be joining us this weekend.
The organisers noted that Souleyman had wanted to raise awareness and funds through his live shows for the growing refugee crisis in Syria.
With that in mind, Amnesty International will be at the festival all weekend to collect donations for their work in Syria.
On his official website, it notes:
Despite world’s insistence to associate him with his home country’s unending war, Omar gives back nothing but Love.
Souleyman wrote a letter to his homeland in September, where he said:
…all future Omar Souleyman shows dedicate to help Syrian people fleeing to a better life elsewhere. Omar Souleyman is a refugee himself, but not an exilee, alone providing for a family of 30. Together with all willing promoters of his shows he conspires to raise funds to aid the refugees in flight from Syrian situation.
Souleyman hails from a village named Tell Tamer in the northeast of Syria. He started off as a wedding singer, releasing hundreds of tapes of his music before gaining international attention when the esoteric label Sublime Frequencies began releasing compilations of his work.
He has gone on to play at festivals including Electric Picnic and ATP, and his first newly-recorded album, Wenu Wenu, was released in 2013. His latest record, Bahdeni Nami, was released this year.
Weekend tickets for Metropolis Festival at the RDS are sold out, but day tickets are still available. As well as the music, the festival will involve spoken word, screenings, and art installations by the likes of street artist James Earley and Charlotte Francis.
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